Meet Countryfile presenter Helen Skelton, who is famed for not only her love of the countryside and sport but also for taking on dare-devil challenges for Sport Relief
How old is Helen Skelton?
Helen Skelton was born in 1983
Where is Helen Skelton from?
Helen Skelton is from a farming family in Cumbria. She grew up in Kirkby Thore near Appleby and went to the local primary school and secondary school.
Helen had an outdoorsy childhood as a result. She and her brother used to make rafts out of old palettes and float them down the river. Her favourite job was to help her dad check whether to cut the silage. "I had to lie down in the grass in the middle of the field. If I couldn’t be seen from the edge of the field, then dad would give the green light to start cutting and collecting the grass."
Is Helen Skelton married?
Helen Skelton was married to England national rugby league team player Richie Myler. They separated in 2022.
Does Helen Skelton have children?
Helen Skelton has three children, two sons and a daughter.
When did Helen Skelton become famous?
Although Helen Skelton had been a reporter and occasional presenter on the children's news and sports programmes Newsround and Sportsround it was her appointment as a Blue Peter presenter in 2008 that brought her into the public eye and made her a household name.
What television programmes has Helen Skelton presented?
As well as presenting Blue Peter and Countryfile Helen Skelton has presented a number of sport programmes including FA Women's Super League for BT TV and was part of the BBC presenting line up for the Rio Olympics in 2016. She also presented The Instant Gardener.
What is she famous for?
As well as her passion for the countryside and sport Helen Skelton is famous for being a bit of a dare devil and her Sport Relief challenges. Helen kayaked the 2,010 mile length of the Amazon for Sport Relief in 2010. It took her 39 days and she now has the Guinness World Record for the longest solo journey by kayak and the longest distance in a kayak in 24 hours for a woman.
She is also the first person to reach the South Pole using a bicycle and walked a 150 metre tightrope between chimneys at Battersea Power Station, 66 metres above ground.
Is Helen Skelton sporty?
Yes! Helen describes herself as sporty, and proved it by completing the 78-mile Namibian ultra marathon - only the second woman ever to do so. She finished the run in 23 hours and 45 minutes, 15 minutes under the 24 hour limit to complete it. She ran the London Marathon just a few weeks later.
Meet some of the other Countryfile presenters
- Who is Hamza Yassin? Everything you need to know about the BBC presenter and wildlife cameraman
- Who is Ellie Harrison? Everything you need to know about the Countryfile presenter
- Who is Matt Baker? Everything you need to know about the Countryfile presenter
Did you know?
Helen is a qualified tap dance teacher, a talent that helped her when she took part in a 2012 Christmas edition of Strictly Come Dancing.
Helen says her city friends don't understand life in the country. "It’s difficult for my city friends to appreciate what life is like in farming. It’s a different culture. I think a lot of people see the bad weather, being outside and dirty fingernails as a hardship, but I know plenty of folks that would rather shovel cow muck than have to get on the Tube every day."